Initiatives

Initiatives

Bat Friendly Fencing

It is clear that barbed wire has become both an animal welfare and conservation issue. Therefore, it is good to hear that several of Victoria's Municipalities including Parks Victoria are taking action to reduce the presence of barbed wire by removal or non-replacement, and/or to make barbed wire safer by lighting, flagging or tape marking. If barbed wire is visible, birds and mammals will avoid it.

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Initiatives

Our Plea for Sprinklers to Help Reduce the Unnecessary Loss of Flying Foxes this Summer.

After loosing around 100,000 Australian Flying foxes last year in the bushfire season - we need to step up and help prevent this unnecessary loss of life. Flying Foxes are endangered, and we need them much more than they need us.

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Initiatives

Rescue of a Juvenile Flying Fox by Redfern Police Officers

On the morning of 9 June 2020, WIRES & Sydney Wildlife Emergency Rescue received a call from two Police officers that saved the life of a precious flying fox. This story details the rescue of a 3 Month Juvenile Flying-Fox in Redfern, Sydney & the Valuable Contribution by Police Officers & Veterinarian.

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Initiatives

Establishing an 'Overhead Irrigation System' to Cool Flying-Foxes During Heatwaves - Equipment & Modular Design

Flying-fox Survival in a High Temperature Environment: Remote Management of Heat Stress Events.
Dr Kerryn Parry Jones concluded the following:

After 3 Heat Stress Interventions on the Central Coast and 5 Heat Stress Interventions at Burdekin Park, Singleton:

* Water spraying works to reduce the temperature at the colony site, to increase the relative humidity and to rehydrate the flying-foxes.
* Water sprinklers placed up trees is an extremely efficient method of spraying flying-foxes during a Heat Stress Intervention.

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Initiatives

IFAW Reports on Fighting Global Wildlife Trafficking and on China's Efforts to Stop Illegal Wildlife Trade

In a response to COVID-19 being linked to the wet markets of Wuhan, China has launched an unprecedented effort to monitor and stop illegal wildlife trade. Reports from IFAW tell us they have moved to ban the buying, selling, transporting and eating of wildlife.

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Initiatives

Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital Calls For Action On World Wildlife Day

This year’s World Wildlife Day theme is ‘Sustaining all life on Earth’ and outlines the importance of preserving our environment and its wildlife, which in turn will ensure a future for generations to come.

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Initiatives

Sprinkler Systems for Flying Foxes

The simple fact is: Flying foxes are threatened to the point that we need to take action. If we don't implement even rudimentary sprinkler systems into flying-fox colonies, the more frequent & intense heat waves will ultimately annihilate this species

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Initiatives

WIN FOR FLYING-FOXES IN MELBOURNE'S CITY OF YARRA

Last night the City of Yarra, in Melbourne, voted in favour of Councillor (and FOBB) Bridgid O’Brien’s motion to support the installation of sprinklers in a section of the Yarra Bend Park colony and to end the use of unsafe netting in the municipality and to also support city wide tree planting options that will help the flying foxes find reliable food.

In support of the colony sprinkler system, cooling the area intermittently seems to really save bats from suffering heat stress.

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Initiatives, Threats

Baby Bats in Cairns

This season the little red flying foxes returned to the library colony in larger than normal numbers. They call the same trees home as the spectacled flying foxes, unfortunately they are fairing well with the newly constructed hotel across the road from the colony and on a daily basis our rescuers are collecting dead or injured little reds from the hotel.
Over 100 little reds have collided with the building wall resulting in their death or injury. Little reds in care with me has jumped to just over 20. Most suffering injuries resulting from head trauma.

The building is proving to be hazardous to first time flyers amongst the spectacled flying foxes as well, with a number of them also sustaining injuries by flying into the new building.

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Initiatives

Recover Biodiversity, Rejuvenate Degraded Farm Land

Regeneration of the soil helps restore balance in ecosystems and results in more efficient use of precious rainfall. Improved soil moisture and vegetation increases humidity and the potential for cloud and rain formation. The overall increase in soil moisture reduces the quantity of tinder dry fuel. Regenerating the soil and restoring the landscape also promotes biodiversity which increases further resilience to drought and bushfire. None of this can stop weather extremes or fire, but it can reduce their scale and impact.

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Initiatives

Girl Guides Sew 'Mumma Wraps' for Baby Bats as Drought, Heat and Fires Take a Toll

Our poor little pollinators need all the help they can get. And our forests need all the help they can get from flying foxes to regenerate after these horrific fires. These gorgeous girl guides are helping to make a difference - South Rockhampton Girl Guides (ABC News)

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Initiatives

Gardeners to Face Backyard Blitz on Netting with New Laws Proposed to Protect Wildlife in Victoria

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) has said that despite public education campaigns, many animals, birds and snakes are seriously injured or are killed in unsuitable types of fruit tree netting. Victorian State draft legislation proposes that all household fruit tree netting 'must have a mesh size of 5mm or less at full stretch, be white in colour, and have a strand diameter of no less than 500 microns'.
Anyone found selling or advertising netting that does not meet the state's regulations could also face a maximum penalty of $2,500.00.

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Initiatives

Trial Begins for First Autonomous Flying-Fox Cooling Technology

An innovative new misting system could be the answer to saving threatened species including flying-foxes from heat stress.

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Initiatives

Louise Saunders has recently been awarded an OAM for her service to wildlife conservation and the visual arts.

Louise Saunders, OAM, who has spent two decades rescuing and caring for flying-foxes has been awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia.

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Initiatives

Setting the Standard: A Well Managed Flying-Fox Colony & Happy Human Neighbouring Community

Grey-headed Flying-fox colony at Yarra Bend Park, Victoria, attracts 100,000 visitors a year.
Yarra Bend Park's success is based on the following:
1. A local, contactable authority from Parks Victoria, Stephen Brend.
2. A 'Friends of Bats Bushcare' Group who undertake planting, weed control, apply for grants and answer questions from the public.
3. Signage & pamplets which are held in all-weather holders which indicate permanency of the bat colony and the human neigbours who accept that the bats are a normal, happy part of the overall community.

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Initiatives

Tolga Bat Hospital

Tolga Bat Hospital commenced in 1990 with the arrival of several orphans whose mothers were the victims of tick paralysis. Tolga Bat Hospital originally worked with bats from the Tolga Scrub and hence the name. The community group now works with all bats, megabat or microbat, from this region and afar. Bats come to Tolga Bat Hospital from remote rural areas many hundreds of kilometres away, and occasionally for sanctuary when retired from zoos.

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Initiatives

FFS supports The Great Koala National Park

The creation of a huge national park for our Koalas is a brilliant initiative that will drive the eco-tourism economy for northern NSW. Of course the preservation of an extra 175,000 hectares of native bush will also benefit our flying-fox friends and all species native to the area.

Unfortunately this brilliant initiative will not go ahead now that the State Liberal Government is in power. If the Berejiklian government is genuine about getting the koala off the extinction waiting list, it must rule out deforestation of koala habitat across the state.

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Initiatives

Reforesting the world: the Australian farmer with 240m trees to his name

Tony Rinaudo's regeneration technique, developed in west Africa 30 years ago, has helped bring back forest over 6m hectares.

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